We were lucky to catch up with Outlawed Beats recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Outlawed thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I always had a passion for music! My Dad used to blast music in our house and in his van, and my mom always encouraged my participation in the band at school (I played alto Saxophone). The day after Christmas in 1999, my friend invited me over to try a new beat program (Acid 2.0)  he had gotten. I put it on my computer at home and it was on!

After mixed experiences working with a few engineers, I eventually bought a low budget studio with Pro Tools and from there I really began learning engineering. I started working with friends and collaborators, but wasn’t until 2007 that I started making money from sessions. It became a side hustle as I was a teacher at the time.

At about 30 years old, having two children, I had a decision to make. Either I find more clients or find something else to do with my time. I decided I wasn’t done, and while I was typically a VERY behind the scenes person, I knew I had to get out of my introverted shell. I started going to more shows, approaching artists I liked and seeing if they needed a place to record. I was surprised at how many needed a new studio. I also started conversations with local artists online, supporting their music and eventually many found their way to me.

After turning recording and mixing into a very strong side hustle, and experiencing the pandemic, I decided it was time to make a run at doing music full-time. While I did initially underestimate the work that would be involved to keep a full schedule, the work eventually began picking up and I’ve been doing music full-time for 2.5 years. I work with artists who are just starting, to artists that are signed with major labels.

Some of the biggest things that have helped me grow my business are focusing on a quality product, client experience, communication, pricing, and cross promotion. Also finding friend groups that do music has been incredibly helpful in finding clients. In addition to working with clients locally, I have clients I work with remotely all over the USA and the world.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’m an audio engineer and music producer based in Tallahassee, Florida. Music is something that has always interest me, but I didn’t know exactly what role I wanted to played. As I continued to find where I fit in, I realized what musicians needed more than anything was a great mix. Being able to take something someone has created and mold it into a finished product that people can enjoy on the radio or streaming next to Drake or Beyonce, is rewarding! I love creating buildups for dynamic moments in the song to grab the listeners attention. My goal is always to help create the artist’s vision while giving the listener the best possible experience. I’ve worked with Ralan Styles, Brisco, Lil Goat, ESPN, and hundreds of others.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

This is a great question and for a beginning entrepreneur I think it’s something a lot of people struggle with. The most important thing as a creative entrepreneur is to get your skills up to a level where people will be willing to pay for them. I think sometimes people jump the gun in excitement to make money when their skills aren’t at the level yet to create the reputation they desire. Ultimately your reputation is such an important part of your business you should treat it like your baby.

I think your reputation comes down to your product and how you make people feel when they work with you. No matter your client’s knowledge about the field, people can generally tell when you are trying your best and when you’re not. Giving your all into each piece of work has been vital to my success of having new and repeat clients.

Doing your best is a piece of the puzzle, but having the interpersonal skills to understand your client’s experience starting from their first interaction with you is also crucial. That means meeting your clients where they are at, timely responses, asking your clients questions (which shows your interest in them), and keeping in touch with them even after the transaction is over. Ultimately clients want to work with people who care about them.

Lastly, I would say having lots of work is important. It’s just like the saying, it’s easiest to get a job when you already have one. People generally copy what they see others do, so when people see you are working with lots of clients they are going to want to work with you as well. So while it’s important to get compensated, if you’re working with a mostly local market, make sure you don’t price yourself out of it. Know your client base.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I’ll start by saying I don’t have a gigantic following, but most of followers are clients or potential clients that are already musicians. I used to be more worried about numbers of followers, but I realized the quality of followers is what’s most important. I learned a lot from watching Gary Vaynerchuck, he’s got great content on how to navigate social media, but also entrepreneurship as a whole. His main mantra for social media is document. You don’t have to be fancy, you don’t have to make it complex, just show people that you’re working. At the end of the day, work attracts work. Tag your clients in your documentation. Encourage your clients to tag you in their posts. As you document, share your successes, share your new gear and equipment, and share your client’s successes. As much as we think people are haters online, people who follow you genuinely, will be more attracted to your online presence.

Also, don’t be disappointed or discouraged when family and friends don’t support your online presence. They value you for you, not your business. Your focus should be on your actual fans of your work. Ten super fans are way more valuable than having your family following your account. Keep your focus on who supports you and don’t get too caught up with like businesses that you may perceive to have better social media presences than you. Macro patience, micro work ethic.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outlawedbeats
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/cvFii3b33Og?si=Env-W8sIKAw74Uiq
• Other: [email protected] Booking Site – https://my-business-109156-105727.square.site/

Image Credits
Photos by Enigmasept